I came across this article today and it reminded that I was intending to start a discussion along these lines.
When you do your shopping, what's your priority? Organic, therefore supposedly healthier and tastier for you, or locally grown? If I have a choice between organically grown carrots from Israel or "standard" carrots from Kent (therefore only down the road by comparison) which should I get? Personally I go for the locally grown. The ideal solution is buy everything from local organic farms, but that isn't always feasible (it involves a lot more planning and really following the seasons, which isn't easy with a household of people who only like specific veg) so I try to compromise... plus growing things locally.
I do however, refuse point blank, to have things like carrots, apples, onions and potatoes that have not been grown in the UK or a country v. close by because they are all grown here in the UK and they store well so can be made available all year round - there is no reason at all to be flying them in from the US or New Zealand (it's amazing how many apples over here have come from New Zealand - the other day I even came across Coxes that had come from NZ.... why?????).
This article also raises another good point - should you really better for eating that organic ready meal, with products from all over the world. It would have less negative impact on the world (and probably taste better) if you made it yourself with local products.
Reply to this article / Report this article
Replying to this comment:
I've just come across an interesting proposal in this whole debate - the Soil Association are proposing a ban that would mean food that has been flown to the UK could not be labelled as organic.
This does make perfect sense (some supermarkets have started putting labels on air freighted fresh veg, which is a start) as many people go organic for green reasons and the impact of the transport is so great, as we've discussed above, it probably negates the good done by the item being organically grown. it would also encourage people to understand the seasons of their fruit and veg.
Of course many retailers and producers aren't happy as this will compound the current shortage of organic goods to meet demand, but I have to say that I agree with the reasoning from the Soil Association.
"An outright ban on air-freighted organics is not the only course of action being considered by the Soil Association. It is also looking at the possibility of labelling organic food products with the number of air miles they have travelled, or a programme whereby the carbon produced by flying is off-set. "
""We believe there is an urgent and pressing need to make every contribution to curbing climate change that we can," he said. "This is a complex issue though: especially for producers in developing countries where it involves equity and ethical trading issues, and that's why we shall actively engage a wide-range of stakeholders to ensure we get it right.""
I'll be keeping an eye out on this one.
Reply to this comment